


Know Your Memes

by WilmaKins



Category: Captain America (Movies), Iron Man (Movies), Marvel, Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Insecure Steve Rogers, Internet, M/M, Memes, Steve Rogers Feels, Steve Rogers Needs a Hug, Tony Stark Has A Heart
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-04
Updated: 2021-02-04
Packaged: 2021-03-15 12:07:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,137
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29189046
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WilmaKins/pseuds/WilmaKins
Summary: Steve Rogers really thought he was getting to grips with the 21st Century... And now here he was, listed underneath an unimpressed McKayla and an ‘overly attached girlfriend’ on knowyourmeme.com. He’d already been shared enough times to warrant a caption:Thirsty Steve Rogers is an emerging photoshop meme, based on a clip of Avenger Steve Rogers exclaiming in surprise and licking his lips after seeing team mate Tony Stark's bicep on MTV News....There were just so many reasons it would be difficult to explain that to his mother.
Relationships: Steve Rogers/Tony Stark
Comments: 34
Kudos: 281
Collections: Wilma Kins Portfolio





	Know Your Memes

**Author's Note:**

> Written for the lovely people on the POTS server.

Steve had just started to feel as though he was getting to grips with the 21st Century. 

Okay, so he still found some of the customs strange, and he still had to translate a lot of things back in his head, and he still hadn’t found anyone who could provide a satisfying explanation for why Rob Kardashian was famous.  _ But _ , he did know who Rob Kardashian was now, along with most of the pop culture references that were casually tossed around. He could join in with these strange modern customs; some of them had even started to become habits. He really thought he was turning a corner…

But it seemed that he’d had at least one rite of passage left before he was truly one of the 21st Century people, and he had to admit it had somewhat thrown him-

Six months after waking up in the future, Steve Rogers was  _ a meme _ .

Contrary to the condescending expectations of so many well-meaning people, Steve  _ did _ know what a meme was. He’d spent enough time online to be basically fluent in the language, even if he still felt as though he was missing the true meaning at times… Certainly long enough to have been sent an amusing meme. It wasn’t the concept that had thrown him - and, actually, had he become the subject of literally any other topical joke he might not have cared…

But there he was on knowyourmeme.com,  _ licking his lips _ , under the title ‘thirsty Steve Rogers.’ 

...There were just  _ so _ many reasons that would be difficult to explain that to his mother.

He’d tried to be mature about this. For days, he’d been telling himself that it was puerile and meaningless and would be forgotten about within a few weeks - and, most importantly, that he didn’t care one way or the other. 

Because he was a superhero and a professional and an  _ adult _ , and he knew it wasn’t important if a few hundred...thousand… people were sharing a -  _ completely out of context, _ by the way - clip of him on a frivolous talk show…

But he couldn’t help wishing that it wasn’t something quite so undignified.

And uncomfortable.

And unflattering.

Or, at the very least, that it hadn’t involved  _ Tony Stark _ of all people. 

Steve attempted to will the heat away from his face, without success. 

Oh, he knew that Tony was going to make such a big deal about this. That it was going to be a running joke for  _ months _ . That, at some point, Tony was going to insinuate that there was some truth in it, and then Steve was going to have to reply…

It was such a stupid fucking segment in the first place - he’d thought so at the time. He should never have gone along with it. 

_ Do you know your teammate’s biceps? _

To begin with - no. Why on earth would he?

And was there really no other way to fill five minutes worth of television time? No question people were more interested in? A less ridiculous parlour game, at the very least…

Steve had been awkward and slightly nervous even before they started playing. He’d felt like he was in the middle of a joke he wasn’t actually in on, sure he must be missing some cultural reference or societal importance, just waiting to put his foot in it... And then the host had held up an 8”12 of an anonymous arm in a black tank top, and Steve had blurted Thor’s name, even though he was already pretty sure it  _ wasn’t _ Thor-

But he really wasn’t expecting the guy to say Tony, okay?

It was just… Well, for a start, Steve had never actually seen Tony’s arms - a fact that he quite obviously became aware of live on national TV. If he thought back, he might have a vague recollection of Tony in a short sleeved T-shirt, the first day they met… But since then, he’d always been in either a business suit or the Iron Man armour. 

And,  _ maybe _ , recently, Steve had found himself looking a bit more carefully. Perhaps he’d been a little more  _ aware _ of Tony’s body, when he was standing right there… But Steve was still uncomfortable enough about that impulse that he’d kept any musings vague and brief. He hadn’t even known that he  _ had  _ a mental image of Tony, he’d been so very careful not to indulge in it-

But apparently he’d been picturing Tony as...well, not as... _ built _ , as that. 

And he’d looked every bit as surprised as he was - which countless people had decided was a different reaction entirely - and now here he was, three days later, listed underneath an unimpressed McKayla and an ‘overly attached girlfriend’ on knowyourmeme.com. He’d already been shared enough times to warrant a caption:

**Thirsty Steve Rogers** is an emerging [photoshop](https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/sites/photoshop) meme, based on a clip of Avenger Steve Rogers exclaiming in surprise and licking his lips after seeing team mate Tony Stark's bicep on MTV News.

...He hadn’t ‘exclaimed in surprise’, for the record. 

He didn’t want to lean into his role as elderly man of the group, or anything… But really, he preferred a world where you could be momentarily surprised by something, or briefly pull an unattractive face, without even considering the global, life-long ramifications. Human beings had been on this planet for thousands of years, and had spent most of that time having meaningless, potentially off-brand,  _ misunderstood _ reactions, which were never seen or immediately forgotten… 

And then apparently they just all decided that this was normal instead. 

That people should simply accept their entire personal history being in the public domain forever, always a part of their current story. 

That people should analyse individual photographs for deep political meaning, as though they’d never lived in a world where people make irrelevant gestures all the time. 

That anyone had even noticed his reaction, much less taken the time to clip it, comment on it and post it on the internet-

That none of these hundred of thousands of people found the whole thing to be surreal and silly. 

That  _ no one _ had even considered the more likely interpretation of Steve’s fleeting expression - that he’d been momentarily surprised, not put an insane amount of thought into what he was doing with his face, and that actually it didn’t mean anything  _ at all _ .

That it obviously didn’t have anything to do with Tony Stark. 

  
  


...Because, really, not  _ one _ of these people had ever licked their lips at an inappropriate time? Or widened their eyes in a way that could be open to incorrect interpretation? 

...Maybe they just didn’t notice themselves doing it, seeing as no one had filmed it, slowed it down and then posted an incredibly confident analysis on their body language underneath it. Maybe they they  _ would _ find it strange if-

A soft knock at the door snapped Steve out of his spiral of thoughts. There was a little spike of adrenaline at the base of his spine, and he very nearly flinched and slammed his laptop shut - it was at the last second that he remembered the weight that gesture carried, the obvious assumption it would lead to...

And  _ then _ he considered that Googling ‘Thirsty Steve Rogers’ might actually be more embarrassing than someone thinking they’d caught him watching porn. 

But it was too late now. 

By now he could tell that it was Natasha, and that she’d already taken a cautious step into his office - easily close enough that she could see his screen over his shoulder. Steve let go of a slow breath as subtly as he could, and wondered if the tips of his ears were as red as they felt.

“Tony just arrived,” Natasha informed him - sympathetically. Steve sighed wearily, giving his laptop one final glance before he closed it. He knew he should’ve been hoping that Tony wouldn’t turn up today, that this would be one of the many general team briefings that he considered himself too important to attend… But Steve knew it had to happen sometime. Part of him just wanted to get it over with. 

“Has he said anything?” He muttered, not quite able to meet her eye. Nat didn’t bother pretending that she didn’t know what he meant.

“Not yet. I don’t even know if he’s seen it,” she answered lightly, and Steve huffed out a bitter little laugh.

“What do you think are the chances, really?” 

“Well, what do you think are the chances that he saw it but didn’t say anything?” She tossed back. Steve fought the urge to groan. He knew that, actually, there was every chance it wouldn’t come up when Tony was talking to anyone else - but as soon as he saw  _ Steve _ …

“Slim to none,” he conceded, miserably. 

*

Well, Steve had been expecting that to be the most uncomfortable meeting of his life - and it was.

But not because Tony had insinuated that Steve was attracted to him, and then mocked his awkward denial, as had been Steve’s first fear.

Not even because Tony had made a thousand wisecracks about Steve’s most recent foray into popular culture - which Steve had taken as an absolute certainty.

No, as ever, Steve had spent two days preparing for every response that Tony could  _ possibly  _ have given, only to have Tony blindside him by doing something much worse-

Tony hadn’t said a fucking word about it. 

Steve had just spent two whole hours with his jaw clenched, inwardly flinching every time the conversation took a new turn - for nothing. Just a handful of unrelated one-liners and the occasional thinly-veiled challenge, exactly the same as every team briefing. 

By the time Maria Hill had called for Any Other Business, Steve was actually  _ angry _ . He knew it was the wrong reaction, uncalled for and unjustified and most unbecoming - but there it was. He was irrationally and undeniably put out by the state of perpetual suspense that he found himself in…

And he found himself thinking back nearly ninety years, to the first time he and Bucky were introduced to the phrase ‘cut your nose off to spite your face’. It was from Mrs  Mizrahi, who had chuckled at their childish bafflement, and then explained what she meant - after which, an eight-year-old Bucky had said, so very earnestly,  _ oh, like what Steve does. _ And Mrs Mizrahi, who knew them both from the neighbourhood, had actually thrown her head back to roar with laughter, before giving Bucky’s hair an affectionate ruffle and telling him,  _ yes, exactly _ .

As Hill called the meeting to a close and everyone gathered themselves to leave, Steve asked himself,  _ having spent three days dreading Tony’s reaction, still having no idea how you’re going to cope with it, lamenting the fact that this simply had to come up, are you really going to be the one to mention it? _

And it was Mrs Mizhari’s voice that answered him.

_ Yes. Exactly _ . 

“Stark,” he called, more hesitantly than he meant to. Tony glanced up to acknowledge him, giving Bruce a friendly pat on the shoulder as he turned back to the table,  _ I’ll follow on in a minute.  _

“What’ve I done now?” He sighed, leaning his weight on the chair next to the one Steve was still sitting in. Steve took a deep breath, waiting until he was sure that the others were totally clear of the room before he answered.

“Whatever it is, I’ve not heard about it yet,” Steve joked, with no joy whatsoever. “It’s nothing like that...”

“Intriguing,” Tony teased, raising an eyebrow.

Steve felt that particular, peculiar stirring under his skin. That not-entirely-unpleasant sensation that he couldn’t name, and couldn’t  _ quite _ link to Tony, even though it only ever happened around him... 

Steve couldn’t explain to himself  _ why _ it happened around Tony, why it only happened at certain times, what this reaction was trying to push him towards… 

It was a mystery that had started to nag at him recently, and at another time he might’ve taken this opportunity to get neurotic over it again-

But he was getting neurotic over something else right now, so any other issues he might have with Tony would have to be set aside and ignored  _ hard _ , for the moment. 

“I take it you saw the segment on MTV?” Steve asked, having to physically force the words through his throat. And then he held his breath, feeling as though he was somehow managing to hold his heartbeat at the same time, and waited to see. 

And, of course, as Steve absolutely knew he would, Tony laughed…

But immediately, Steve knew this wasn’t the reaction he was expecting. Not at all. 

As always, the emotional response came before the logical analysis. A fundamental part of Steve recognised the tone and expression and the way Tony held his body - he could  _ feel _ that there was no malice or mockery in it. It was a soft, inconsequential sort of a laugh, as though Steve had reminded Tony of something he found endearing. The smile in his eyes was warm, and unthreatening… and inclusive. 

He wasn’t laughing  _ at _ Steve…

Which was  _ odd _ ...

“No, actually,” Tony confessed, in a voice Steve wasn’t sure he’d ever heard before. A friendly tone, completely free from the defensive edge that had  _ always _ been there, up until now. “No, I stopped watching MTV when they stopped playing music, on a point of principle. But, yeah, congratulations on your first memeing. Now you just have to be a Twitter hashtag and you get your Internet Merit Badge.”

...And Steve was completely thrown. 

In a flash of panic, it occurred to him that he had no idea how to carry on with this conversation. Because he didn’t actually want to talk  _ about _ this. Hell no. But now  _ he’d _ been the person to bring it up - specifically called Tony back to deal with it, in fact. And if Tony asked him why, Steve wouldn't have any response at all… seeing as ‘so that you can mock me for it’ seemed ridiculous, all of a sudden. 

...But Tony didn’t ask.

He just stood himself upright again, as though he already knew that the true purpose of this little conference had been reached, and flashed another smile before he added,

“And it has to be a  _ hashtag,  _ by the way - just ‘trending on Twitter’ doesn’t count. Anyone can do that.” 

Steve felt something inside him ease, like a thawing between his shoulder blades. A fundamental response to this new persona that Tony had adopted, something that shifted his mood without his permission…

“You know, sometimes I think I’m  _ never _ going to understand the 21st Century…” just sort of slipped over Steve’s lips, even though he was still as uncomfortable about this topic as he’d ever been. And Tony laughed again, and Steve’s mind finally supplied a word for it-

Kind.

Tony was being  _ kind _ to him…?

“Ah, you’re confusing social media with the 21st Century,” Tony explained, “which is fair enough, because so do most news networks - but what they never tell you is that everyone in the 21st Century is as confused about social media as you are. In fact, asking yourself what the fuck is wrong with half the people on Tumblr is probably the most modern thing you’ve done so far.”

Steve felt himself smile, even though he didn’t want to-

And then, oh God, the beginnings of a blush, warming up along his neck-

“I haven’t tackled Tumblr yet,” he managed, glancing down at the table. Still, he heard that same soft,  _ kind  _ laugh from Tony. 

“Yeah, maybe build your way up to that one…” he mused, playfully. And then, when Steve was brave enough to look up at him again, he added, “although, I might only be saying that because there's a blog on that site dedicated to Tony Stark memes - I don’t think you’ve given them enough ammunition for that, yet.” 

And then he raised his eyebrows, a knowing expression passing briefly over his features, before he smiled a goodbye and left without saying another word. 

Steve just sat there for a moment, not sure how he felt - other than slightly dizzy. And then his shoulders dropped from under him, his ribs easing enough to let him take a full breath, and he realised…

He felt  _ better _ .

He wasn’t sure why he did, but he did. He felt lighter, and more comfortable, and…

Something else. Something he’d think about and name later. 

For now, his attention was snagged by the last thing Tony had said to him - the unspoken assurance that he was allowed to Google Tony’s memeable moments, if it would help…

Even as he pulled his phone out of his pocket, a part of Steve knew that it wasn’t his real motivation. 

He’d almost thought about Googling Tony so many times since they met - increasingly, as Steve found more and more about the SHIELD report that was misleading or incomplete or just plain wrong… But he’d always stopped that idea before it even formed, instinctively afraid of what it would  _ mean _ if he did it…

...But if there was a specific reason

...If he could tell himself that this was about something else entirely

...If Tony had  _ told _ him to-

Actively fighting his own self awareness, Steve typed the phrase ‘Tony Stark Memes’ into the search bar - vaguely irritated when the specific blog wasn’t the first result returned…

Smiling, as he recognised himself complaining about the search functionality of the website, his memory paraphrasing Tony’s words for him, 

_ Wondering what the fuck is wrong with Tumblr is probably the most modern thing you’ve done so far… _

Maybe he wasn’t as far out of his depth as he thought he was…

Eventually, by way of a reblog on therollingstonys (a site he might’ve accidentally committed to memory, even though he didn’t yet know on what pretense he was going to go back to it…) he found what he was looking for. A blog that proudly proclaimed itself the home of all Tony Stark Gifs, and a row of crudely captioned images - the first of which was a photo of Tony looking incredibly hungover, wearing a bright pink string vest and fluffy deely-boppers, with the title ‘Iron Man Armour, Development Stage’. 

For the first time in a long time, Steve felt a genuine smile warm through him. Not because of the meme, which wasn’t especially clever or funny, but because of a feeling of connection. 

Because it turned out that he and Tony did have some experiences in common after all.

Because Tony had chosen to let him in on this, chosen to share something of himself - because this might’ve been the first time ever that Tony had shared anything with him at all.

And because… well…

Tony  _ did _ have very nice arms, as it turned out. 


End file.
